


Starting Over

by Cherith



Category: Alice In Wonderland - Carroll, Rotkäppchen | Little Red Riding Hood (Fairy Tale)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-30
Updated: 2010-03-30
Packaged: 2017-10-08 12:45:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cherith/pseuds/Cherith
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alice and Little Red have an unexpected meeting in the forest.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Starting Over

"Where did you come from?"

"That's a good question." The young brunette looks back over a shoulder at the dark forest behind her. She shrugs, "I was walking down the path through the forest..."

Alice leans to the side to get a good look around the girl, but doesn't see any path through the trees. "Well, I don't see a path."

"I know," the girls turns completely around and stares at the trees. The shadows are heavy under the snarl of twisted branches and thick leaves. She heaves a heavy sigh and fidgets with the basket over her arms.

"So why don't you tell me what happened? Maybe I can help?"

The young girl sets the basket on the ground then flops down in the grass next to it and gathers her knees up in her arms. Alice checks around for a nice clear spot in the grass and sits facing the girl, spreading her skirt out and smoothing down her dress apron. She looks the younger girl over: her dark hair, pigtails, pretty and clean red dress. She's had a bizarre morning herself, and the confusion written on the girl's face feels much like she imagines her own must.

"This morning, my mother made a large breakfast." She points to the basket at her side. "There was too much for just she and I, so she sent me out to take the remainder to my grandmother's house."

Alice nods, listening with interest.

"Grandmother doesn't live too far, I only had to follow the path and take her breakfast." The girl's gaze darts around the clearing, continuing to look for the absent path. "But, I don't know what happened."

"Well, I am new here myself but I don't think it's unusual for this place to lose a path, or confuse a traveler." Alice gives the girl a soft smile. "I, just this morning have found myself in several strange and frustrating places."

The girl returns Alice's smile with a shy one of her own, "Truly?"

"Oh my yes. As a matter of fact, I just left a strange area covered in flowers that sang to me."

"They sang?"

"And were mildly insulting, but I cannot say I was entirely pleasant to them either."

The girl giggles but catches herself as she remembers her dilemma. The two of them sit quietly for a moment, both of them scanning their surroundings: Alice looking for any sign of the mysterious white rabbit, and the girl, hoping to spot the path to grandmother's house. Suddenly, Alice jumps up, and reaches down toward the girl, her bright blue eyes sparkling.

"I have an idea, come on!" The girl grabs Alice's hand and pulls herself up. She grabs her basket folding the handles over her free hand and waits for Alice's instruction. "So, I was coming from that direction," she gestures behind her with her free hand. "And you, appeared here right here, so you must've been coming from that direction," she points across the clearing to the forested area in front of them.

The girl nods, "I think so."

"Well, I'm sure we can't go the way I came, I haven't seen any house that looks like it belongs to a nice grandmother. And, I was headed over towards the forest anyway, so I'll go with you."

"You will?"

"Of course. Maybe, if I go with you, I can help you find your path. Maybe help you start over, find the beginning of it, so you can find your grandmother's house."

The girl nods, and the two of them set off towards the shadowed forest. As they step under the branches, the girl tightens her grip on Alice's hand. She shrugs the arm holding her basket to adjust it closer to herself. She looks up at Alice hoping to find reassurance in her her new friend's face.

"My mom told me stories about the woods. It's why I'm supposed to stay on the path."

"I understand. Don't think about those stories now, just think about the path and your grandmother's house. Maybe it'll help you find the beginning."

"Alright." The girl closes her eyes, and after a moment her grip on Alice's hand loosens. "The path is just dirt, at the end of a long road out of our neighborhood. I always like to stand at the beginning of it, because it has beautiful flowers. Bright red ones, like my cape."

"Sounds pretty."

The girls wander for several minutes through the forest. The shadows are thick, but they walk slowly, and are able to see in front of them as they go. Alice, always watchful, spots a cat high up on a tree branch once but when she stops to point it out to her young companion, it disappears. The girl thinks it's a very long time before either of them speaks. And she tries hard to think of the red flowers she always picks for her grandma where the path begins and it helps make the trip easier.

When Alice does say something, it's an exclamation "I see them! I think those are your flowers!"

It takes her a moment, but she sweeps her gaze through the darkness, and she too can make out the grouping of flowers through the shadows several yards in front of them. She drops Alice's hand and runs towards the flowers, cape billowing behind her, both hands tight on the basket to keep it closed. When she reaches the path she looks back for Alice, but sees only the road leading to her neighorhood.

Alice lets the young girl run out ahead of her thinking to catch up with her in a moment. But as she watched the girl running through the trees, Alice thought she caught another glimpse of the strange cat in the trees. When she looked back, she caught only a flash of red on the far end of another clearing. On the other side, the sun shone down on a large table with several tall wingback chairs and what looked like a mighty tea party.


End file.
